AMID the strong opposition of all the presidentiables in the recent debate on “contractualization” of the labor market in the Philippines, social enterprise Gandang Kalikasan Inc. (GKI) said it has already embraced the regularization and “no firing” policies of workers, which eventually fueled its business expansion.
While around 35 million Filipinos are just hired as contractual workers with a five-month contract and no benefits, none of the employees in this company behind the Human Nature brand could be heard telling an “endo” or end of contract horror stories.
This is contrary to the practices of most employers in the country, who usually claim their businesses will be affected if they don’t give jobs on an interim basis only.
In the case of GKI, however, it has consistently reported its achievement of a 30-percent year-on-year growth while it continues to provide permanent jobs to 371 employees today, and pay the rank and file workers from 44 percent to 76 percent above-minimum wage in the National Capital Region. The workers are also given full benefits.
“Not many businesspeople I talk to think this is a good idea,” Human Nature Cofounder Dylan Wilk said of their labor-friendly rules.
“They think they would be taken advantage of with a policy like that.”
But that is not the case with GKI given that at least 58 percent of Human Nature employees come from urban-poor communities, and that each worker can look forward to becoming regularized.
“‘Why would someone work hard if they know they will not get fired?’ they ask me. But we’ve found the opposite. Filipinos are hardworking, kind-hearted, loyal and want to contribute. When we take someone from the slums who has believed his whole life that his life can never change or that he is worthless, good for nothing and we tell him, ‘We will not give up on you,’ he gives us his very best,” he said.
“Over the years, there have only been a handful who abused that policy, but we have hundreds who have given their best because they know we care for them. These people have built Human Nature,” he added.
Apparently, “genuine concern” for their growth and the business is common among Human Nature’s employees like Elaine Reyes, a merchandizer assigned to a department store in Quezon City.
She claimed this is not the norm in other companies, where time padding and general laziness, among other negligence and irregularities, happen.
The reason for this, she noted, is that most people feel their pay is small and their contract will end in five months anyway.
“Pero sa Human Nature, ‘di ka lang basta regular. Sinasabi sa iyo na pwede kang maging team leader o department head; pwede mangarap [But in Human Nature, you’re not just a regular employee. You’re told you can become a team leader or department head; you can dream],” she said.
With the cooperative employer-employee relationship simplified by GKI, this eventually led Human Nature to become the country’s biggest all-natural personal care, cosmetic, and home-care brand at present.
To date, there are 31 Human Nature branches across the country, and its direct-selling arm has an 80,000-strong network of dealers.
The brand has more than 150 products on its roster, with new products launched every eight weeks—all carried by several major retail chains in Metro Manila.
Starting with founders Dylan, Anna Meloto-Wilk and Camille Meloto as the only employees in 2008, the company has grown to 371 workers, with 70 merchandizers assigned to various retail floors nationwide and 57 people in various manufacturing roles.
As a leading eco-friendly brand, Human Nature has doubled its international business revenues as it expanded its reach in the United States, Singapore, Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The firm recently opened its first brick-and-mortar kiosk in Dalma Mall, Abu Dhabi, making it the first Filipino beauty brand to open its doors in the UAE.
Human Nature stores also serve as a distribution channel for 12 social-enterprise brands.
It is interesting to note that two of the fastest-growing social-enterprise brands—Bayani Brew and First Harvest—are patterning their employment policies after Gandang Kalikasan Inc.
“My cofounders dreamed of creating affordable natural products using Philippine ingredients. We just read the signs of the times that were all pointing toward sustainability and inclusivity,” said Meloto-Wilk, cofounder and president of GKI.
“But making it work was all about stewardship, hard work and faith, especially in these trying times. Quitting was not an option and sometimes that’s the motivation that you need to make things move and grow,” she said.
When pressed on their own brand of corporate success, the top executive said, “Real growth to me is not only one which is seen in profitability, but one wherein our employees experience genuine progress.”